Team Peeta Shirt

Ever since I whipped through the “Hunger Games” trilogy in less than a week, I’ve wanted to make a Team Peeta shirt. I seriously liked him more than Katniss. But that's for another post. You don’t have to be like me a make a fangirl shirt for a fictional character, but you can still learn from my method... and subsequent mistakes. Apologies for not getting pictures of every step of the process. I didn't intend to post this project but I figured you should all know what a loser how awesome I am from the start. This may look like a lot of work, but it's really not - it's just a process, like everything.

Materials:

• Freezer paper
• Craft knife or Exact-O Knife (you'll probably need a cutting mat too)
• Tee shirt, preferably with some cotton content (you’ll see why later)
• Piece of scrap cardboard
• Sponge with a fine grain
• Textile medium
• Acrylic paint
• Thin lint-free cloth or piece of thick paper (paper from a paper bag works well)

1.  Get fancy with your computer and figure out what design you want on your shirt. Print out your pattern either on paper & trace it onto the freezer paper or directly onto your freezer paper. Either way, you are going to be ironing the shiny side of the paper to the shirt so making sure you are marking on the matte, paper side. Also, make sure the lines of your design aren't too fine or they will be difficult to cut out. This is the freezer paper I used: 

I went out at 10:30 to get this from a 24 hour grocery store. That's craft dedication.

2.  Cut out with the design with the craft/Extact-O knife on the cutting mat, unless you enjoy deep slices in your dining room table.

3.  Iron your shirt flat on the hottest setting it will take. Place your freezer paper design on top and position meticulously for the next 10 minutes (OK, you can skip that step).

4.  Set your iron for the hottest setting your shirt can take. This is where using a shirt with cotton content comes in handy: it can take a fair amount of heat, but is still comfortable to wear. Carefully iron your design to the shirt. Keep your iron moving or the paper might melt... or something. Consider wearing your shirt as is because it kind of looks cool already.

AmIright?

5.  Protect your craft surfaces with towels. Always. Take the cardboard and place it between the two pieces of fabric that make up the back and front of your shirt under your design. You may want to wrap your cardboard in plastic or more freezer paper to keep paint from sticking just in case it seeps through the shirt.

6.  Mix up your textile medium and acrylic paint according to the manufacturers instructions (see "What I Learned" below). I ended up using 4 tablespoon of acrylic/medium mixture for two coats on this shirt.

7.  Lightly dab your sponge into the acrylic paint/textile medium mixture and start painting that shirt! Use light, quick dabs without too much pressure pressing straight down. Be sure to get the paint all the way to the edge of your design to get a crisp line. Do one coat & let it try completely if you want to do a second coat of paint. If you want to keep it at one coat, skip to step 9.

One coat.

Two coats. That's better!

8.  I went for a second coat on my shirt since the paint dulled considerably after drying. I just covered my extra paint with an inverted paper cup while the shirt dried and it was fine when I came back. Just be sure to mix it up thoroughly before using just in case of separation. If you do go for multiple coats, keep in mind that the thicker the paint, the more likely it is to crack in the wash. 
9.  After applying the final coat, let the paint dry until it's barely tacky to the touch. Start gently peeling up the freezer paper. The more intricate the design, the slower you'll have to go. When all the freezer paper is removed, let the shirt dry for the next 24-48 hours.

10.  Now it's time to cure your design and make it washable! Set your iron to the highest setting the fabric of your shirt will take. Remove the cardboard, place your shirt on the ironing board and cover the painted design with the lint-free cloth or piece of paper. Place the iron on the design and hold in place for 30 seconds. Repeat until the entire design has been heated. I spent another minute or so running my iron over the design just to be sure. Remove your cloth and admire your handiwork!
12.  Wash inside out, preferably with cold water on a delicate cycle. Fluff drying and drying the shirt flat may help preserve the paint longer. My paint is a little on the thicker side so I have to iron it after every wash (it shouldn't be this thick though, see "What I Learned" below). I just place a piece of paper over the design and iron it flat on the highest setting for my shirt's fiber content (no need to hold the iron in place, just run it over).

Wear with pride...

...preferably with a Katniss-inspired braid.

What I Learned:

• My paint ended up a little thick for my liking. My medium used a 2:1 paint to medium ratio, but my paint was a different brand so it wasn't wasn't thinned enough. Next time I'm going to try a 1:1 ratio for this paint, but for all others, especially Americana acrylics, I'm going to stick to a 2:1 ratio.

What do you guys think? Would you ever make a Team Gale shirt?